The University of the State of New York 
The State Department of Education 


School Libraries Division 


CONDENSED CLASSIFICATION FOR A 
SCHOOL LIBRARY 


ARRANGED BY 


FRANK K. WALTER 
(Vice Director, New York State Library School) 


t This preliminary classification has been prepared for the library 
f institutes for high school librarians held by the School Libraries 
@ Division of The University of the State of New York and the 
® New York State Library School. It is based, with the consent of 
f Dr Melvil Dewey, on the 1915 edition of his well-known Decimal 
® Classification. Similar schemes prepared by the library commissions 
@ of Minnesota and Wisconsin, by the Syracuse University Library 
@ School and by Misses Zaidee Brown and Martha Wilson, and Miss 
: Margaret Mann’s “ Subject Headings for Use in Dictionary Catalogs 
of Juvenile Books” have been freely used. A number of high 
school librarians have contributed suggestions based on their own 
experience. As far as the special needs of the average high school 
library permit, variations from the Decimal Classification have been 
_ avoided. The terminology has frequently been popularized to meet 
the needs of teachers unfamiliar with some of the terms used in 


@ library catalogs. 


It should be understood that any library is expected to use only 
@ such classes as are represented in its collection. Small libraries 
® should usually assign only the more general numbers (subordinate 
classes are indicated by indention) ; for example, all books in physiol- 
ogy and personal or public health may be put into 612 instead of 
_ being divided between 612 and 614; all books on United States 
history into 973 instead of being divided into periods, etc. This 
will require changing numbers as the library grows and closer 
classification becomes necessary, but the convenience of having only 
; a few classes at first sometimes outweighs the disadvantage of later 
changes of class numbers. The amount of classification to be done 
must be determined by the merits of each individual case and, 
whenever possible, expert advice should be obtained from some 
_ competent librarian or from the State Department of Education. 

This edition is strictly tentative and criticisms and suggestions are 
invited. Only those—classes likely to be useful in the high school 
libraries of the State have been included. In any collection of more 
Qe emery (7-47 20) 


2 


than a few hundred volumes, it should be used in connection with 
the Abridged Decimal Classification (Library Bureau, N. Y. $1.50) 
and, in the large school libraries with the complete Decimal Classifi- 
cation, 10th edition (Forest Press, Lake Placid Club, N. Y., 1919, 
$6). Both of these contain detailed indexes which are of great 
value in determining the proper class in which to put books dealing 
with very special subjects. 


GENERAL SUMMARY OF THE TEN MAIN CLASSES 


000 General. Library science 
100 Philosophy, psychology 
200 Religion 

300 Sociology. Education 
400 Philology. Language 
500 Natural science 

600 Useful arts 

700 Fine arts 

Soo Literature 


goo History. Biography. Geography 


General 
O10 
O16 
020 
028 
030 


050 


General book lists. (In large libraries lists on particular 
subjects are put in 016, or they may be put with the 


subject ) 
Lists of books on special subjects. (Subject bibli- 
ography ) la i 


Library organization. (Library economy) \ \ S- 

Aids to readers. Books on reading and the “eine bf 
books. Many school librarians prefer to put these into 
800 and its subdivisions 

Encyclopedias, general handbooks, almanacs and other 
books of miscellaneous information 

Periodicals 
Arrange alphabetically by name of periodical 


Philosophy and religion 


100 
150 


170 
220 


290 

291 
Sociology 

300 


310 


320 
323 


325 


327 
328 
330 
goo 
359 


370 


370-7 


Histories of philosophy and miscellaneous works 

Psychology. (Methods of teaching are put in 370-378. 
In school libraries child study should be put in 372.1) 

Ethics. (Includes books on conduct, success etc.) 

Bible. (Includes stories from the Bible, Bible selections, 
etc.) 

Religious history. Church history. (Books about dif- 
ferent religions should be put here) 

Mythology. (In most school libraries Mythology is 
better put with 398) 


General books on social conditions. 
Statistics. (Many statistical books of a general character 
are better put in 030; e. g. World almanac) 
Civics. Political science. Legislative manuals 
Civic problems and duties 
Citizenship, Americanization, Patriotism, Suffrage 
Immigrants. (In many school libraries it is better 
to put books about immigrants under the more 
general Citizenship number, 323) 
Peace. Arbitration. Foreign relations. Preparedness 
Parliamentary law 
Economics. Labor. Conservation. Finance 
Military science. Army. Military training : 
Naval science. Navy. (In small libraries books about 
both the army and navy may be put into 355) 
Education 
General works. History of education. Educational 
periodicals (arranged alphabetically by title) 
Teachers training agencies 
Teachers colleges, Normal schools, Training classes, 
etc. Arranged alphabetically by name of school. 
In large collections the following further subdi- 
visions may be used: Teachers colleges and normal 
schools, 370.73; Training classes, 370.75 


h 54295 


375 


375: 
BAo! 
375: 
375: 


375: 
375: 
375: 


375: 


oO NOMNH 


375-7 


Wek 
375: 
EY ia 
375: 


377 
378 


380 


4 


History of education. (Includes also biographies of 
individual educators ) 

Practice of teaching. For methods of teaching special 
branches, see 375 

Teachers. Certificates. Salaries 

School administration 

School discipline 

School buildings and equipment. School grounds 

School hygiene. Medical inspection. Physical train- 
ing. Military training in the schools 

Education of special classes (e. g. blind, deaf, defec- 
tive) 

Elementary education 

Child study 

Kindergarten and early grades. Story telling 

Secondary education 

Home education. Study clubs | 
Self education. Reading courses. Correspondence 
courses. (For “Home projects” in vocational 
training, see 375.6) 


Courses of study. Methods for teaching special sub- 


jects. (In some school libraries books on special 
methods are kept with the subjects, e. g. Teaching. 
English in 800) 

Foreign language instruction 

Nature study. Science teaching 

Teaching mathematics 

Vocational training. Theory and methods. (For 
vocational guidance, see 607. For manuals on 
special trades, see 680 and note) 


Physiology and hygiene 

Military training. (For general discussions, see 371.7) 

Agricultural education. School gardens. (Schools 
with special courses in agriculture will need a fuller 
classification such as those suggested in the 
appendix on page IT) 3 

Domestic economy 

Art education 

Musical training 

Reading. English 

History. Civics 

Geography 

Religious and moral education 

Higher education. Professional training. Colleges 
and universities 


Commerce. General discussions. Commercial geography. 


Most books used in commercial education belong in 
650, which is the better general place in most school 
libraries 


Language 


400 


Science 


500 


595 


Customs. Holidays 
Costume. (Books on dress, dressmaking, millinery etc. 
should go here. Methods go in 375.64) 


Etiquette 
Fairy tales, legends. Mythology. Fables. Folklore. 
Proverbs. (See also 291) < 


Language. Grammar. Etymology etc. 
In school libraries it is usually best to put dictionaries 
with the reference books in 030 and readers, grammars 
etc. in 800 with the literature of the different languages. 
If several languages are represented in the school 
library the following divisions may be used if needed: 


420 English | ~ 460 Spanish 

430 German 470 Latin 

440 French 480 Greek 

450 Italian 490 Other languages 


General science. Outdoor books. Nature stories etc. 
Books dealing with “nature study’ may be put in 
a separate class (507) if the collection is large and 
“nature essays” in 504. For methods of nature 
study, see 375.5 
Mathematics : 
Textbooks used for reference etc. Methods in 
375-51 
Astronomy 
Physics (see also 608 and 620) 
Electricity 
Chemistry 
Geology. (Put here also books on minerals, which in 
large collections are put in 549) 
Physical geography 
Biology. (Put books treating of both animals and 
plants here) 
Primitive man. Savage life 
Botany 
Trees 
Bacteria. Fungi 
Zoology. Animal stories 
See also 570. Animal stories may be put with 
“Nature stories ” in 507 
Insects 
Birds 


Useful arts. (Technology) 


600 


Industries. Inventions. General discussions. (For 
methods of teaching, see 375.6. Books treating of 
more than one industry if 680 is used for separate 
industries 


607 


608 
612 
613 
614 


614.8 


620 


Gar 


02547 
630 


640 
OAI 
643 
645 
646 ° 


647 
649 


650 
653 
656 
680 


Fine arts 
700 
701 
709 


6 


Vocational guidance. (In small collections everything 
relating to vocational training may be kept here or 
in 375.60; manuals of special trades go better in 680) 
Inventions. . (Books on inventions may be put into 620, 
in small libraries) 
Physiology and hygiene, nursing, first aid. (Put here 
all books treating primarily of health and disease) 
Gymnastics, physical training 
See also 790, Games, sports 
Public health and sanitation. (Put here material deal- 
ing with a community rather than with an individ- 
ual; e. g. Epidemics. Water supply. Pure food) 
Protection from accidents. Fire prevention “ Safety 
first’? methods 
Machinery. Engineering. (Includes books on engineer- 
ing methods and machinery. For general descrip- 
tions of inventions, see 608. If the library contains 
many books on electrical work, they may be put in 
621.3) 
Electrical engineering. Electric machinery and toys. 
Telephones. Telegraphs 
Roads 
Agriculture. (The Division of Agricultural and Indus- 
trial Education of The University of the State of New 
York has formulated a special scheme for agricultural 
literature which, while different in detail from those 
generally used in libraries, can be made to fit into the 
630 section of a high school library. See page 11 for 
suggested schemes suitable for high schools with agri- 
cultural courses ) 
Home economies 
Cooking. Food 
House planning (see also 710) 
Furniture. Interior decoration 
Sewing. Needlework. Textiles. Costume (see also 


I 
Household finance and management 
Nursery. Care of children. Care of sick. (Books 
belonging here can be put in 610 if desired) 

Business. Commercial education 

Stenography 

Transportation. Railroads. Steamships. Canals etc. 
Shop work. Special crafts or trades. (Arrange alpha- 

betically by trade. Amateur manuals (“How to” 

books) belong here) (See also 600) 


General works. Manuals 
Art education (better in 375.7) 
Histories of art 


y 


Literature 


800 
807 
807.1 


810.8 
810.9 


Sir 
811.8 
Si2 


7 


Landscape gardening 
Architecture 
Sculpture 
Drawing. Decoration. Design. Arts and crafts in 
general. (Industrial art belongs here; the craft 
side belongs in 680) 
Mechanical drawing 
Rugs, carpets, wall paper and other ornamental 
design 
Furniture. (See also 607 and 680) 
Painting. Engraving 
Photography 
Music 
Amusements. (Theatricals. Dancing. Moving pictures) 
Indoor games and amusements 
Outdoor games, sports and amusements 
Hunting. Fishing. Shooting 


General books on literature 
Study and teaching of literature 
Poetry 
Drama 
Fiction. Short story 
Essays 
Rhetoric. Composition 
Poetry 
Drama 
Fiction 
Essays 
Oratory. Public speaking. Debating 
Letter writing 
Humor. Satire 
Quotations. General speakers. Collections 

History of literature (general ) 

American literature. (Some school librarians prefer to 
keep American and English literature together either 
in 810 and its subdivisions or in 820 and its sub- 
divisions. In most school libraries it is better to 
keep them separate. Canadian literature may be 
put in either place but preferably with 820) 

Collections. (Those including both prose and poetry) 

History and criticism of American literature. Biog- 
raphy of American authors. (Biography may be 
put in 920 and g21) 

American poetry 
Collections of American poetry 

American drama 


813 


814 
815 
817 
820 


820. 
820. 


821 


821. 


822 


822. 


822. 


823 
824 
825 
827 
830 


839 
840 


850 
860 
870 
880 


890 


8 


American fiction. (Many school librarians prefer to 
keep all fiction by itself, arranged alphabetically by 
author. Others prefer to scatter it with the subject, 
e. g. Stories of army life in 355, animal stories in 
590. The use to which it is put will largely deter- 
mine which is the better arrangement. Where it is 
used chiefly for recreational reading the former is 
usually the better) 

American essays and prose miscellany 

American orations. Speeches and debates 

American humor 

English literature 

Collections. (Those including both prose and poetry) 

History and criticism of English literature. Biog- 
raphy of English authors. (Biography may be put 
_in 920 and 921) 

English poetry 

Collections of English poetry 

English drama 
Shakspere (works, criticisms etc.) 

(In small collections Shakspere may be put with 
other dramatists in 822) 
Collections of English drama 

English fiction (see note under 813) 

English essays and prose miscellany 

English orations 

English humor 

German literature. (May be divided like 810-17 or 

820-27 ) 

Scandinavian literature. Dutch literature 
French literature. (May be divided like 810-17 or 

820-27 ) 

Italian literature. (May be divided like 810-17 or 

820-27 ) 

Spanish literature. Portuguese literature. (May be 

divided like 810-17 or 820-27) 

Latin literature. (May be divided like 810-17 or 820-27) 

Greek literature. (May be divided like 810-17 or 820-27) 
Put here books dealing with both Latin and Greek 
literature 

Other literatures; e. g. Arabian, Chinese, Russian 


' 


History (including Biography and Geography) 


goo 


History, general (Includes work treating of ancient, 
medieval and modern history together. See also 930 


and 940) 


gio 


QI2 
gI4 
O15 
g16 
O17 


O17. 
917. 
O17. 
O17. 


O17 


QI7. 
O17. 
917. 
O17. 


918 
919 


920 


Q2I 


O CONI An Aw Db 4 


N 


9 


Geography and travel. (Put into 910-919 books of 
travel, descriptions of countries and places, guide 
books, atlases, adventures (not fiction) etc. In 
some school libraries gt0-919 and 930-990 are com- 
bined; i. e. geography, travel and history are put 
together either in 910-919 or in 930-990. Most 
school librarians think it better to keep them 
separate ) 

Maps, atlases 
European travel and adventure 
Asia. Travel and adventure. 
Africa. Travel and adventure 
North America (including Central America and the 
West Indies). (In most libraries the following 
further subdivision will be useful) 
Canada. British America 
Mexico, Central America, West Indies 
United States (may include Philippines) 
New York State ; 
The South Atlantic States 
South Central or Gulf States 
North Central or Lake States 
Western or Mountain States 
Pacific coast 
South America 
Oceanica. Australia. Polar regions. Philippines 
(The Philippines may be put in 917.3) 

Biography. (Put here books treating of more than one 
person ) 

Biography of individuals. (Arrange alphabetically by 
surname of the person about whom the book is writ- 
ten; e. g. Mrs Richards’ “ Florence Nightingale ” 


would be marked 94'> larger libraries often use 


more elaborate methods of indicating the subject of 
the biography ) 
Flags. Coats of arms 
Ancient history. General history. (See note under 900) 
Rome 
Greece 
European history. Medieval and modern 
Scotland. Ireland 
England and Wales 
Germany. Austria 
France 
Italy 
Spain 
Russia 
Norway. Sweden. Denmark. Iceland 
Other European countries 


950 
Q51 
952 
954 
960 


970 
971 
972 
973 


973: 
973: 
973- 
O73: 
973: 
973 - 
973: 
973: 


974 


974- 


975 
976 
977 
978 
979 
980 
9go 


N CON Ow HW DN 


Io 


Asia 
China 
Japan 
India 
Africa 
North America. Indian life and history 
British America. Canada 
Mexico. Central America. West Indies 
United States 
Discovery and exploration 
Colonial 
Revolution 
Constitutional period 
War of 1812 to Mexican War 
Mexican War to Civil War 
Civil War 
Since Civil War 
New England and North Atlantic States 
New York State 
South Atlantic States. The South 
South Central and Gulf States 
North Central or Lake States 
Western or Mountain States 
Pacific States 
South America 
Oceanica. Australia. Polar regions. Philippines 


II 


Appendix 
Classification Schemes for Agricultural Literature 


Schools with courses in agriculture will receive large quantities 
of bulletins and other pamphlet material which must be rather 
closely classified to be of much use. The scheme given below is 
recommended by the Division of Agricultural and Industrial Educa- 
tion of The University of the State of New York, Albany, N. Y. 
Questions concerning its application to specific items should be 
addressed to that division. 


630 Agriculture. General discussions 
631 Farm mechanics 
632 Soils and fertilizers 


633 Farm crops 
634 Animal husbandry 
635 Dairying 


636 Horticulture. Fruit growing 
637 Farm management 

638 Farm engineering 

639 Miscellaneous topics 


e. g. Plant pathology, entomology, special tests and 
analyses, farm buildings 
Another fuller scheme prepared by Mrs F. H. Ridgway of Berea 
College, Berea, Ky. is given in the Library Journal for October 1913 
and is reprinted in full in Bulletin 1917, No. 41 of the U. S. Bureau 
of Education, Washington, D. C. Requests for the bulletin should 
be addressed to that bureau. 


[e 


3 0112 061916935 


